


Bubble Baths and Mixed Tapes

by artbyweb86



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Bubble Bath, Domestic Fluff, Mixed Tapes, Relaxation, bath bombs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 00:42:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8600353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artbyweb86/pseuds/artbyweb86
Summary: Dan has trouble relaxing. Phil has an idea. Will it work?This is what I think Phil would try and do after Dan posts this tweet:*sits in a bubble bath and tries to relax* *starts thinking about all the injustice in the world gets too stressed and leaves* well i tried





	

Dan and Phil are sitting on the couch in the living room. A comfortable silence fills the room, the occasional click of the keyboard or a muffled laugh could be heard.

Dan suddenly closes his laptop and gets up.

“I think I am going to take a bubble bath!” and starts walking towards the bathroom with no other explanation.

Phil mumbles an acknowledgement while continuing his browsing of cute puppies playing with kittens. He figured Dan stumbled across something on tumbler that had to do with bathbombs or baths and found the idea to be intriguing. So his abruptness of getting up to do something never surprises him anymore. 

A few minutes later he hears the water running and Dan humming something that he can’t quite make out.

Phil was so engrossed in his videos he gave a small squeak of surprise when Dan plopped himself on the couch with a huff. Pulling his phone out of his pocket and then pulling his laptop to his lap.

He looked at his clock, noticing that Dan was only in the bathroom for 15 minutes. He didn’t look like he had a relaxing bath.

“What happened?” he asked, almost knowing what the answer would be.

“You know me, too many thoughts swirling around.” Dan pulled his phone out and quickly opened twitter.

Dan Howell posts new tweet  
*sits in a bubble bath and tries to relax* *starts thinking about all the injustice in the world gets too stressed and leaves* well i tried

Phil reads the tweet from Dan and sighs. 

“Did you have any music with you at least?”

“No, honestly, I don’t think it would have helped. Bubble baths were never my thing anyway. No big deal.”

“No big deal? Dan, you deserve to get out of your head once in a while. If I could get you in a field of Shiba Inus, I would! We have been working to the bone with our British, US and Australia tours. We both need some downtime before our Europe tour, even though we are only going to a few places. But that’s a few months away. Your brain needs to relax. I don’t know how you aren’t crawling the walls some days, with the stuff you tell me goes through your head on a daily basis!”

Dan just shrugged his shoulders. “That’s sweet of you Phil, but it’s fine. I’m fine. I wanted to try it, and it didn’t work. I do other things to keep my brain occupied.”

Phil sighs again wishing he could help Dan in some way. Suddenly a thought popped in his head and he started messaging some of their friends for some advice. He hoped this plan would work. His birthday was already past, but maybe an early Christmas present. Hopefully he could get all the info he needed in time.

It took a few weeks, but he finally got the last piece he needed for Dan’s bubble bath mixed tape. He listened to each segment again, satisfied that his friends knew exactly what he was asking for. They even went above and beyond his expectations. They all knew Dan and knew what it took for him to relax and get out of his head. He started editing, adding his personal touches to it.

A few days later, Dan seemed really out of sorts. Mumbling about the dreary weather outside, glancing at his phone, then his laptop. Going to the kitchen to get a drink, only to get up again to get his charger for his devices. But he couldn’t sit still.  
When he finally did get settled, he just couldn’t focus on what he was browsing on. Just staring at the screen.

He felt Phil’s presence in front of him. When did he move from the couch? He was holding a small wrapped gift in one hand and a small CD Player boom-box in the other. A big grin on his face.

“What’s this?” Dan asked curiously taking the gift. “My birthday was months ago…”

“Just open it! I was saving it for Christmas, but I think you could use it now, before our tour starts up again.”

Dan tore open the gift, revealing a CD labeled “Dan’s Bubble Bath Mixed Tape”.

“Really? A mixed tape? What is this? The 80s? I told you, music doesn’t work for me. And bubble baths aren’t really my thing.”

Phil wasn’t swayed by this. “C’mon, there is one more thing I want to show you!”

He grabbed Dan’s hand, who started to protest, but curiosity got the better of him and trusted whatever Phil had planned.

They stopped in front of the bathroom. Dan could see a small glow coming from the gap at the bottom of the door. He opened the door and his mouth dropped. The bathroom had been transformed into a spa. Small candles were lit, strategically placed. The tub was full, and a variety of bath bombs were laid out. Towels and a bathrobe ready for use.

In a hushed voice, as if he was afraid to ruin the moment, he asked, “What is all of this? Phil? And when did you even have the time to do this?”

“I just wanted to do something special for you. You seem a little high strung lately. I don’t know if the tour has anything to do with it, or the pressure the fans seem to be putting on us lately. And ever since your failed bubble bath attempt, I came up with an idea. So whenever you are ready, choose a bath bomb, the water is a good temp now, and pop the CD in. I wanted it to feel authentic. Take all the time you need.”

He left Dan standing there. He shook his head to bring himself out of his shock. He looked around the bathroom with awe. The candles were placed nicely, no fire hazards to be seen. Wincing at the thought, he stopped himself from over analyzing everything. 

Getting his bearings, he undressed and placed his clothes on the floor. Grabbing his favorite bath bomb, apple cinnamon, he placed it in the water, letting it fill the air with a lovely aroma. Then he popped the CD in and pressed play. Bach filled the room.

He chuckled and slid into the bath. Only Phil would know his favorite Bach selections.

This only lasted about a minute before silence filled the room once again. 

A slight squeak and then Phil’s voice startled him. 

“Oops, sorry for that little squeak. I couldn’t figure out how to get rid of that in editing. Haha. Don’t think that there are any mice running around in here. Although, there might be with the mess we’ve managed to accumulate in our traveling here and there. Sorry, getting off topic. Well, I hope you are enjoying your bath so far. You probably think it a bit strange that I am talking and there isn’t more music. But don’t worry, there will be some. But this idea popped into my head, ever since you had your failed bubble bath those many weeks ago. So that being said, you may hear my voice from time to time. I think this CD is about 2 hours long, not sure how it got to that point, but so many people were happy to volunteer. So I will alert you of the time at intervals. Silly I know, but I know you hate looking like a prune. And the water might need warming up, if you wish to stay in long. So…if you feel your mind wandering, start thinking of shibes in a field, or the best food you have ever tasted. Ok my time is up! Rawr!”

Dan closed his eyes, a smile creeping on his lips at that part.

Music filled the room again. Was that My Heart Will Go On? Dan’s heart swelled. He thought back to when they sung that, messing up the lyrics horribly, but laughing all the same. Maybe they will have to do another lyrical video for the fans.

A squeak and a voice filled the room. PJ!

“Hi Dan. Did you squeak? Maybe that was my imagination. Just wanted to say hi! Ummm…you still haven’t picked up your socks! I’ve kept them all this time. What am I going to do with you? Really? Slytherin and Griffindor? Together in the same room? Are you mad? Sorry, sorry, this isn’t about the socks. Not about the socks. I want to do a dramatic reading of my Colour Bandits, you mentioned you really liked it. So here it goes, my tiny planet explorer!

~~~  
Sitting before you is not a man, but merely a cracked shell,  
A shell of the lightest pastels to the darkest hues,  
Housing burning reds, spirited greens and muted blues,  
with no motive, reason, or rational behind his ways,  
Except to desaturate worlds and leave completely unphased, do not be amazed, for Colour Bandits have no morals these days.  
They'll extract until colour no longer crosses against their path, laughing sweetly as they make luminosity feel their calm, evasive wrath. Head to toe in matte, for which is almost completely unmatched.  
Apart from a spectrum, so brilliantly and viciously dispatched. 

A bandit's worst nightmare in a void would be to dye,  
As all the colours come rushing and bleed deep, proceeding to stain their lives, with strokes of beryl, turquoise tints and compliments of shades of plum,  
A mixture of something new, unknown to man what exactly they'll become,  
Some believe they leave behind their soul, black and white, like a mortal wound, a gaping hole,  
Others say they become something royal, a supreme jade, a strengthened cobalt,  
I can't fathom a Bandit becoming something so noble. 

Blooming bursts of brightened tones make the bandits blush, crushed colours stricken ill, and an ill defence it is against mountains and moss, a golden gloss, at a complete loss, gasping for air, as he struggles, ensnared by colour.  
He clenches and tightens but to no avail,  
suffocating to an unimaginable scale,  
his demise is a veil of crimson,  
An impenetrable prison of iridescence,  
swallowing the mere presence of a Bandit of value.  
The chestnut makes him considerably more heavy,  
weighing him down, as the cerulean splashes engulf him, causing him to drown.  
The scarlets burn endlessly, whilst tightly he's held by mint green, squeezing tighter and tighter. 

It's a perilous sight your eyes would never let you believe, and if they did your body would stiffen up straight and never let you leave. 

Standing before you is not a man, but an occupied shell, defeated, his mind in a daze his body in a coma, he rests for just a moment drifting slowly in the chroma, and Falls to his already weakened knees and contemplates the sweet relief of becoming something more. More or less.  
(Lyrics by PJ Liguori – all credit goes to him)  
~~~

“Hope you liked it! It moves me every time. I can’t believe I wrote that. Ok, I think I went over my limit. Hope to see you soon!”

(side note: seriously go check out the video PJ did. So well done. He really is quite talented. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICzA5LRRm7Q&t=151s)

Dan took a deep breath. He loved that piece. The music video was so powerful too. He is glad PJ is doing so well on his channel. He deserves so much. Before he had a chance to really think about the lyrics and what they meant, Phil’s voice jumped in.

“Hi Dan! Just wanted to let you know it’s the 25 minute mark. Check out the water temp, add a little hot water! Ok byeee!”

A light classical piece was next. 

“Hello Love! Your fave is here! Sprinkleofglitter to save you from any doom and gloom you may be feeling right now! Ahh, it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other. Any awkward stories you can tell me? Of course not, you’re in the bath. This is strange. Well, I can tell you an awkward moment I had the other day. Oh, before I tell you, Darcy wants to say hi! 

‘Hi Uncle Dan! Can you babysit me soon? I miss your silly stories. Aahwooo, get it? Howl!’ A giggle and then Louise spoke up again.

She loves you to bits. I may ask you to watch her soon. She’s been asking for you and Phil. I know your tour is coming up, so when you have free time. Nothing to worry about now.

Ok, my story. I was at the shop trying to do some food shopping. I wanted to make something special for dinner and so I went down the international isle to get some of the ingredients. Of course all of the things I needed where on the top shelf. And for me being so short this was a problem. Always is to be honest. Nobody was in the isle, and I wasn’t going to wait for help. So what did I do? I stepped on the bottom shelf to get a little higher. It worked, but the shelf isn’t made for standing, so just as I grabbed what I needed, the whole shelf broke! I was able to avoid falling myself, but not before all the pasta sauces decided to come down with the shelf, and then proceed to break and then stain my white dress and my leggings. Someone had just come round the corner as it was happening. I made eye contact with them just as one of the cans started rolling towards them. They were so shocked they didn’t know what to do! I turned, careful to avoid slipping on the sauces and quickly ran out of the store. I think I heard someone yelling, but I didn’t stop. Mortifying! I won’t be going back, I’m sure I’ll be banned anyway. What a sight! Almost wish you were there! Oh how we would have laughed and laughed about it later.

I will leave you with that. I love you!”

Dan actually laughed out loud. Amazing.

Immortals, by Fall Out Boy was next. 

Oh Philly. A song that was in Big Hero Six. That was a good day. He still can’t believe they got to have parts in that movie. Can he use the word flabbergasted. I think he could. Phil would just smile and say something cheesy. 

“Beep boop boop. Phil of the future here. Are you still awake? Hope you haven’t fallen asleep in there. That wouldn’t be good. Boop Beep, click.”

Another classical piece followed.

“Hello Everybody and welcome, oh oops, not my channel, my bad. Heyyy Dan! Markiplier here. This is going to be short and sweet. I have a more interesting segment coming later in the CD, I had a really good idea that would take a little longer than this. Phil was kind enough to let me do it. So this segment, I’m just going to talk like I do in my world’s quietest let’s play segments that I do. You may have already noticed that I am doing it, so if you thought I was was being weird, not that I am not ever not weird, haha, just let it slide. So you like dogs, do you? Well Chica is here and wants to say hi. I taught her to bark softly, so let’s see if this works. Chica! Indoor voice! 

A quiet huff that sounded like a bark was heard. 

“Ahh, good girl Chica. That was cool right. Sorry if I am boring you or putting you to sleep, people tell me I have a very soothing voice.”

Dan felt himself nodding in agreement. He would occasionally watch some of his gaming videos, although didn’t want to spoil any games that he and Phil might play in the future. But he is always entertaining and his voice makes it all the more better.

“Ok, one last thing. I’ll be back again later, but wanted to tell this to you now. Phil may have told you a millions times, your fans may have told you a million times, your friends may have told you a million times. But I wanted to tell you too. You are loved. You are talented. You have so much to give. I know you have struggled in the past. I know you had your demons or fears or whatever you may call it about your future. But right now, it is looking very damn bright. You fought hard to be here and look at what you have accomplished! By yourself and with Phil by your side as well. Don’t forget how you got here. Continue to do good things. It can only get better from here.

And when you and Phil have time, I would love to do a gaming collab. That would be so cool. If you are in the states again, or I come out there. I’ve been meaning to take a vacation for some time now.

Oh boy, Phil is really generous with giving me this time. I really went over my limit. Ok, enjoy the rest of your bath. Buh-Bye! I’m waving now, but you can’t see that. Silly me!”

All Star, by Smash Mouth.

Dan had tears in his eyes from that amazing speech Mark had given. But he was happy too. Now he was laughing, because he knows how much Phil hates when he plays that song over and over again.

“Bloop Bloop Rawr! We are at the one hour mark! So…looking like a prune yet? We have a few more people to go, and some more fun music to come, so hopefully you are very relaxed. Unless you want to get out now. Perfectly understandable. Check the water too. Might need to warm it up a bit. Yes? No? Ok. Byeeee. Meow!”

Dan was grinning from ear to ear. But he was very pruny and wasn’t sure how much longer he could stay in the bath. Plus his butt was getting numb. So with a reluctant sigh he carefully stood up and got out of the tub.

With some Bach serenading him, he grabbed the towel to dry off. His hair had gotten a little wet and was starting to curl on the sides. At this point he was too relaxed to care, nobody will be seeing him. He then proceeded to blow out the candles. Putting on the bathrobe, he moved towards the CD player. Not wanted to turn off the music just yet, he stood and swayed with the music, his hands unconsciously moving in the rhythm of the piano segments. 

The music stopped and before he could turn it off, he heard, “Top of the morning laddies! Evening…? Afternoon?…My name is Jacksepticeye! And welcome to…”

Oh, that one will be interesting! But that could wait for another time. He was actually looking forward to his next bath time. A sentence he thought he would never say or think in this case.

He took a look at the CD sleeve that Phil made up. The rest of the list showed who was next. Jacksepticeye, Crabstickz, Hazel, Mark again, Carrie, Jack and Dean and Dodie. It didn’t list the music, but with the selection that he had listened to, no doubt would be just as sentimental and moving.

He had to go find Phil.

He wasn’t in the lounge anymore.

Bedroom? 

No…

Maybe the kitchen?

Yup, looked like he was making tea. Two mugs were out. How did he know? 

Phil’s back was turned toward him, so he didn’t see him entering. He didn’t say a word and just wrapped his arms around Phil’s waist.

“Thank you.”

“Oh! You scared me! And you are welcome. You smell nice. You used the apple cinnamon bath bomb. Nice choice. “ Phil said leaning into Dan’s hug. “Do you want tea?”

“Can I have hot chocolate? With some marshmallows?”

“Well then. Coming right up! How about a movie marathon? And look, it’s almost dinnertime! Pizza? Or Chinese? Or Sushi? Delivery of course.”

“Chinese and movies sound good right now. How do you always know how to cheer me up? It was like going down memory lane. I didn’t ask for a nostalgia fest! I hope I am good at helping you in a crisis. I am not really sure what I would do, since I am usually the one in crisis. You seem to…”

“Dan, look at me. You do plenty for me too. More than you could possibly imagine. Let’s not think about that now. Let’s not think at all. We can pick out a few movies and put our order in. Here is your hot chocolate.”

They moved into the living room, sitting next to each other on the couch. They picked out their choices for dinner and made the call. Next step they browsed through Netflix and started picking movies they wanted to watch. Dan grabbed the big blanket from the back of the couch and wrapped it around himself. He wanted to stay in this position forever. Phil nudged him and grabbed the blanket so they were both snuggled under it. 

With their first movie about to start and drinks almost finished, they started to relax. Just then the bell rang, signaling the food delivery had arrived.

“I’ll get it!” Phil said. He got up, leaving Dan already missing his warmth.

Phil came back, setting the food on the table. He left to get plates and utensils and then sat back down next to Dan. Dan wrapped the blanket around them again and they started eating while the movie began. 

They continued watching movies well past midnight. Neither in a rush to escape each other’s company. Both leaning on each other, and holding hands they were starting to drift off. 

“I think it’s bed time for both of us, sleepy head,” Phil said to Dan, who could barely keep his eyes open.

Dan groaned, but agreed. “I could fall asleep right here. You make a good pillow.”

Phil just chuckled and ushered Dan to his room. Once he knew he was settled, he went to his room and changed into his pajamas and took out his contacts. 

Without giving it a second thought, he went back into Dan’s room and got in the other side.

“Mind if I join you?” Phil asked.

“Not at all. I said you would make a great pillow. I stand by that. But also, I was already missing you. Thank you again for giving me that present. It really means so much that you went to those lengths to make sure I could relax. Which it really did! I stopped at Jackseptieye, when I got out of the tub. I would love to hear him and the rest of the people. But that could only mean another bath time session. Which I really look forward to!”

“How about we put it on now? It will be great background noise as we fall asleep. I’ll be right back!”

Within a few minutes, Phil returned with CD player in hand. He set it up by the door. He back tracked it to the Bach piece, just before Jack’s part and jumped into bed.

The music was just long enough that Dan and Phil were just about asleep. 

They drifted off without a thought in the world just as Jacksepticeye came on.

“Top of the morning laddies! Evening…? Afternoon?…My name is Jacksepticeye! …”

Who knows what tomorrow will bring. They could only wait and see.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope you liked it!


End file.
